The present invention relates generally to an information terminal apparatus, a navigation system, an information processing method, and a computer program and, more particularly, to an information terminal apparatus, a navigation system, an information processing method, and a computer program which allow users such as children who do not have enough knowledge for correctly reading maps to instantly understand their current positions, and present, on terminals having limited display capabilities as with mobile terminals, such information essential to users as the directions in which users are heading for example.
Recently, portable personal computers and mobile phones have become widespread, allowing their users to carry these devices on them for outdoor or on-the-way communication through networks. In this so-called mobile computing environment, the number of service modes available for these users through networks is quickly increasing.
One of these service modes is the provision of navigation information. This service started with the provision of mainly the map information for cars; currently, services for presenting the information about users' current locations and the maps leading to destinations are provided for not only in-vehicle navigation systems but also mobile communication terminals such as mobile phones and PDAs which users carry on them.
The GPS (Global Positioning System) is known as a system for detecting the position of an in-vehicle navigation system or a user-carried mobile terminal for example. A terminal having these position detecting capabilities also allows the detection of a direction in which the user is heading and the selection of map information to be presented on the user terminal as well as the setting of the direction of the presentation.
A system for detecting user positions by the GPS and providing optimum navigation information is disclosed in non-patent document 1 shown below. The system disclosed in this document is called Walk Navi which is constituted by a mobile system for performing positional recognition, voice interaction, information display, and mobile communication and a geographic WWW (World Wide Web) server for relating positional information (latitude/longitude) with URLs (Uniform Resource Locators) of WWW.
Non-patent document 1 proposes a position recognition processing configuration in which an area where a user is currently positioned is computed from the latitude/longitude information obtained by the GPS and an electronic map, a voice interaction system configuration which provides high convenience in inputting information while a user is walking, and a geographic WWW server configuration in which latitude/longitude (or address) information is related with URLs.
As described above, a variety of navigation systems have been proposed or commercialized so far, but many of current navigation information providing services are limited to the presentation of two-dimensional map information. Namely, these services display maps represented in two-dimensional vector information or bitmap information onto user terminals. These kinds of two-dimensional map information are often difficult to recognize on portable terminals having limited display capabilities. Besides, for such users who cannot understand how to read maps as children, these kinds of two-dimensional map information avail nothing.
[Non-patent document 1]
Author: Katashi Nagao, Member of Committee, Research Working Group
Title: Agent Augmented Reality; Integration of the Real World with the Cyberspace by Agent
Associated portion (page, column, line, etc.): 3.3.6.2 Walk Navi (pedestrian navigator)
Media type: Online
Date of publishing: March, 1998
Publisher: Advanced Information Technology (AITEC), Japan Information Processing Development Corporation (JIPDEC)
Address: Fourth floor, Shiba Tokyo Kaijo Building, 2-3-3 Shiba, Minatoku, Tokyo
Phone: 03-3456-2511
Page of publishing such as place of publishing: Trace the following link from http://www.icot.or.jp-Research
research report:
1997
H9-8: Material, Researches into the intellectual information technology based on human being (March, 1998)
To the table of contents
3 Technological Problems to Be Solved and Research Scenario
3.3 Agent augmented reality—Integration of the Real World with the Cyberspace by Agent
Date of search: Nov. 21, 2002
Source, Address: http://www.icot.or.jp/FTS/REPORTS/H9-reports/H9-HCIS/AITEC 9805R1-ch1-303.htm# anchor-ch3-3-e